2009.05.04: May 4, 2009: Headlines: COS - Turkey: University Education: Islamic Issues: Daily Evergreen: History professor Robert Staab got his start after college, when he joined the Peace Corps and served in Turkey

History professor Robert Staab got his start after college, when he joined the Peace Corps and served in Turkey

Turkey laid the groundwork for a future in teaching, first at the University of Utah, where Staab worked toward a doctorate in Middle East studies, Turkish and Islamic history, and now as a WSU teacher of 10 years. Every semester brings a new batch of students into Staab’s classroom and with it an opportunity, as he sees it, to break through Middle East incognizance. Students in the past have assumed Staab to be a five-prayer-a-day practicing Muslim while another student, when pressed to name a group of people who live in the Middle East, once named Puerto Ricans the first day of class. Staab said the lack of understanding is an opportunity to give back some of what he has learned, which is in essence a tenet of the Peace Corps. As the years have gone by, he said, “(Students) know more about Islam than they used to. But there’s a preconception that’s not always right. I see them lagging behind at how things got to be. I’m thankful I’ve gotten to teach them that.” As a history instructor and Staab’s colleague of 12 years, Lydia Gerber has seen firsthand the sort of ethic instilled by the Peace Corps reflected in Staab’s service to the university. In September 2001, when the two shared the same office, Staab played a particularly crucial role, she said. “He was so helpful in putting the Middle East in perspective,” Gerber said, adding that Staab worried about how much Islamic culture may be blamed in the court of public opinion.

Professor values passion for teaching History professor Robert Staab got his start after college, when he joined the Peace Corps.

Edward A. Quedado II

The Daily Evergreen

Published: 05/04/2009 Story Tags

* Robert Staab

Today signifies the culmination of more than 30 years of teaching college students for senior instructor of history Robert Staab.

But before reaching this point, the longtime teacher flunked out of college.

A self-avowed slacker, during his college years, Staab, who lived in Los Angeles when he was 20, recalled surfing and “periodically going to school.” “I was floundering,” he said. “Maybe I didn’t think I was serious enough to be in school at that point.” It was in the Peace Corps that Staab would find his calling and his future wife. One day he said he happened to talk with a Peace Corps recruiter who had persuaded him to enlist. “Fate, kismet,” in his words, led him to Turkey.

“I just needed to get out on my own,” Staab said.

Staab recalled his two-year stint in a small Turkish village with 600 people living without electricity and amenities. He reminisced about the sense of belonging, the people and their lives, the food and taking the all but broken down early morning bus into town with traders clutching flocks of squawking chickens.

Turkey laid the groundwork for a future in teaching, first at the University of Utah, where Staab worked toward a doctorate in Middle East studies, Turkish and Islamic history, and now as a WSU teacher of 10 years.

Every semester brings a new batch of students into Staab’s classroom and with it an opportunity, as he sees it, to break through Middle East incognizance. Students in the past have assumed Staab to be a five-prayer-a-day practicing Muslim while another student, when pressed to name a group of people who live in the Middle East, once named Puerto Ricans the first day of class.

Staab said the lack of understanding is an opportunity to give back some of what he has learned, which is in essence a tenet of the Peace Corps.

As the years have gone by, he said, “(Students) know more about Islam than they used to. But there’s a preconception that’s not always right. I see them lagging behind at how things got to be. I’m thankful I’ve gotten to teach them that.” As a history instructor and Staab’s colleague of 12 years, Lydia Gerber has seen firsthand the sort of ethic instilled by the Peace Corps reflected in Staab’s service to the university. In September 2001, when the two shared the same office, Staab played a particularly crucial role, she said.

“He was so helpful in putting the Middle East in perspective,” Gerber said, adding that Staab worried about how much Islamic culture may be blamed in the court of public opinion.

Given the political climate, Gerber said representing Middle Eastern culture to a sometimes unwilling audience makes Staab’s field particularly difficult.

“Islam challenges us more than any construct,” she said.

Staab acknowledges the complexities involved in teaching Islam to students who have grown up in a post-9/11 world. While he does not expect every student to become more tolerant, h said he hopes all students become more understanding of the religion and culture.

“I hope I started that understanding,” he said.

In his evaluations, Staab said one word repeatedly emerges – passion. His style of teaching might come across as biased, but, he said, “I don’t think I’ve ever been accused of being an apologist. I’m probably more pro-Islamic just because I understand more about it.” One student who has taken his class, senior political science major Tom Westphal, said Staab brought a better understanding of Islam to WSU.

In addition to taking his class, Staab also served as guide to Westphal’s thesis on U.S. arms flowing into Pakistan.

“He really cares about students,” he said. “He is willing to spend the extra time. He’s been a great mentor.” As far as the future of Islam goes, Staab said despite a sizable public apprehension of the religion, the religion possesses the tools necessary to meet the needs of the 21st century. Though Islam has yet to go through a reformation like that of the Catholic Church, it maintains principles that allow it to adapt to a post-9/11 world.

Staab said his decision to dedicate his life to education and his style of teaching is, in a sense, a way “to thank those Turkish people who put up with me in those two years in the village.” Staab plans to stay involved in community and academic work. He has several research projects planned and intends to assist in projects improving adult literacy and working in tandem with the Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute. Still, nothing, it seems, will supplant his true passion.

Director Ron Tschetter: The PCOL InterviewPeace Corps Director Ron Tschetter sat down for an in-depth interview to discuss the evacuation from Bolivia, political appointees at Peace Corps headquarters, the five year rule, the Peace Corps Foundation, the internet and the Peace Corps, how the transition is going, and what the prospects are for doubling the size of the Peace Corps by 2011. Read the interview and you are sure to learn something new about the Peace Corps. PCOL previously did an interview with Director Gaddi Vasquez.

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Story Source: Daily Evergreen

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